Apr. 27, 2011

Jenny Hoy trains for the Rock-N-River Marathon at the Spark Marina on Tuesday, April 5, 2011. Photo by David B. Parker. / David B. Parker/RGJ

JENNY HOY

ON RGJ.COMBLOG: Follow Hoy's progress at RGJ.com/marathon, where you'll find her blog posts, marathon training tips for any first-time runner and registration information for the Rock-N-River race.VIDEO: Jenny Hoy discusses how far she's come ahead of Sunday's race in a video at RGJ.com/marathon.

In December, the English teacher at Vaughn Middle School entered the Reno Gazette-Journal's First Time Marathoner contest after making a deal with her students.

"I entered the contest not thinking that I would win," said Hoy, who was chosen from more than 100 applicants and on Sunday will run her first marathon, the fourth annual Rock-N-River race.

The 40-something mom of two will start the 26.2-mile race at 6:30 a.m. She is hoping to cross under the Reno Arch -- site of the finish line -- around 2 p.m.

So, what was the deal?

As Hoy was preparing her classes for recently completed yearly exams, she would often explain the process as "an academic marathon." And she told her 131 students that if they read for an hour a day, then she would exercise for an hour a day.

When the contest surfaced, Hoy said her students presented her with a challenge: "They said 'We have to take a test. What will your test be?'

"Once I won, it was like, 'OK, game on. I'll do it,'" Hoy said. "I can be a little stubborn, so there is no room for failure. I will finish."

On Sunday, Hoy will wear bib No. 131, keeping each one of her students on her mind during the race.

Team Hoy

A community of supporters has helped Hoy over her nearly

six-month-long training period.

Michael Connors, co-founder of Reno Running and Fitness who also will be running Sunday, helped put together Hoy's training plan and has worked with her as a running coach. Hoy completed a 20-mile training run -- her longest -- last weekend.

"I think Jenny made a good candidate because of her pragmatism," Connors said. "Anyone who takes running 26 miles lightly is in trouble. Jenny took it for what it was -- this was going to be her metaphorical hill to climb. She is modeling something for her students, but also for herself -- to show that hard work will have a true reward."

Her family has been there every step of the way as well.

Her oldest daughter is attending college in the Midwest and will run a half-marathon on Sunday. Her youngest daughter, a Reno High senior, will volunteer at the Reno race, and her husband's band will be play along the route.

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"The support I have received has been very overwhelming and humbling," Hoy said. "It is just incredible what they have been able to get me through."

And there are more -- the staff of CV Sports helped her find a pair of running shoes that kept pain in her shins down, nutritionists at Whole Foods "taught me to grocery shop after all these years," Hoy said, and the staff at European Fitness Spa, Scheels and many members of Reno Running and Fitness who trained Tuesday evenings and Saturday mornings on weekly group runs -- Hoy said all gave her continued encouragement.

The end game

Along the way to Sunday, Hoy has enjoyed more than a few moments of self-discovery.

"I am learning I am capable of more than I thought I was," she said. "Learning something new can often be transforming in ways that you don't expect."

She remains open to the process of discovery -- unsure of where it will take her -- but in a recent blog post (Hoy posted one blog a week at RGJ.com/marathon throughout her training), she was certain about one thing.

Her goal is to finish, but the 4-foot-11 runner with a determined stride admits it has become about something more than just crossing the line: "When I started, I thought, 'OK, the next five months I would focus on this.' Now that the time is near, I realize that the marathon itself isn't the end game.

"I don't know what the end game is. This has taken me somewhere I didn't expect. As I reflect on that, learning to read or learning to write isn't the end game, it is about where those skills take the student. I reflect upon that in terms of a learning process, and it has helped me relate to my students and their struggles."

On Sunday, for 26.2 miles, Hoy will have a community and a classroom supporting her.